A Rainy Night in Jersey
by Diva In The House
Summary: A House/OC one-shot. House normally hates the rain, but over time, decides that maybe...it's not so bad.


**Just a little one-shot, originally posted in the Fox forum. I don't own House, but Matthews is all mine. Enjoy. :)**

House was sitting in his office, tossing his oversized tennis ball, listening to the rain pound his office window. His team had been busting their collective ass on a case all week, and they finally cracked it, sending their patient on the road to recovery. Only Thirteen remained to finish the charting.

She poked her head through the door that joined the office and the conference room. "I'm out of here, House. Have a good weekend."

"Yeah, you too. Have fun with Foreman."

House continued sitting, regretting not taking Wilson up on the offer of a ride earlier. Now Wilson was long gone, and House debated the idea of riding the motorcycle home in the rainstorm. It wouldn't be his smartest move, but he'd done lots dumber things than that.

Just as he almost had his mind made up, he heard a knock on his office door. _Who the hell would that be? Nobody's ever here at this hour._ He turned around to see an unfamiliar face at the door…but not entirely unfamiliar. House was pretty sure he'd seen her before, but it just wasn't coming to him. He shoved himself out of his chair and limped over to the door.

House opened his office door and checked his watch. "Hmm…you're early. The escort service said you wouldn't be here for another half hour."

She looked amused and rolled her eyes. "Doctor Avery Matthews. We met earlier in the week, but you were pretty busy with your case. I'm the new head of cardiology. My office is just down the hall from yours."

_Aah…now I remember. Cuddy introduced us on the fly. How could I have forgotten a face like that? _Now that he was able to get a closer look at her, House regretted not taking the time to talk to her earlier. Matthews seemed to be a study in shades of brown, from her soft chocolate hair to her coffee-colored eyes to her caramel colored skin. _Tasty_, thought House. _I wonder who she's going home to? Why is she here so late, anyway?_

As if she read his mind, Matthews spoke. "Wilson stopped by earlier on his way out. Told me you rode the bike in, and thought you might not want to ride it home in the rain. It's pretty nasty out there, you know." She appraised him, too, thinking over what Wilson told her earlier. _"He probably won't take it...matter of fact, he'll probably bite your head off. Can't hurt to try, though."_ Matthews looked House over, wondering how she had missed those brilliant blue eyes before. Those blue eyes, peeking out from behind a pair of reading glasses, coupled with that scruffy beard and rugged face made for a rather handsome package.

House rolled his eyes as Matthews sized him up. "Fine, I'll take the ride, as long as it ends up somewhere we can get a drink. Looks like the rain's not going to let up anytime soon."

House gave Matthews directions to a small bar near the hospital, a familiar hangout for he and Wilson. They were seated in a booth and placed their drink orders, a bourbon for House and a glass of Cabernet for Matthews.

"So…" House played with his glass, occasionally sneaking glances at the dark beauty that sat across from him. "This is the part where I ask you where you're from, how you got into medicine, all that lame stuff, right?"

Matthews laughed a silky laugh as she twisted her fingers around the stem of her wineglass. "Right…Lets see…originally from Chicago. Mom was Kenyan, Dad was English, and somehow they ended up in Chicago. I knew I wanted to be a doctor by the time I was in junior high, and I chose cardiology because my grandmother had congestive heart failure, and since I couldn't save her…" She dipped her head and chuckled. "I know, it sounds silly…"

"…A little." House snorted, but grinned a little, too. _That smile just lights up his face! He should smile more often…_

Matthews set her chin in her hands and looked directly at House. "So what about you? What's your story, Doctor House?"

"First of all, it's House. Just House. As for the rest…not much to tell. I was too smart for my own good, grew up a military brat with no desire to follow in my old man's footsteps, and here I am." _And here's the part where she asks about my leg, like it's going to create this great bond or something. Wait for it…_

"Don't worry, I wasn't even going to ask about the limp. You'd probably tell me it's none of my business anyway."

"Ahhh…you've been talking to Wilson! Naughty, naughty…" House wagged a finger at her.

She laughed again and took a sip of her wine. "He didn't tell me much, really. I think his exact words were…'It's complicated.'."

"Good. I've got to keep an air of mystery about myself, you know." House chuckled, a deep, mellow sound that belied his gruff exterior. _This just keeps getting better. This is kind of fun, actually. I'll have to drop by his office more often._

Matthews laughed gently in return, a sound as sweet as any music. _I'm kind of glad she stopped by. Good on Wilson for hooking me up…with a ride. Yeah._ She checked her watch. "Oh, it's getting kind of late for me. Can I drop you at your place?"

"That'd be great, thanks."

It was still raining when they left the bar, the torrential downpour of earlier replaced by a much gentler, but still steady patter. Matthews pulled up in front of House's apartment, leaving the car running. It was so silent that all they could hear was the gentle rhythm of the rain. House spoke first.

"This was cool. Thanks for…the ride."

"Yes, of course. Thanks for…the drink."

As Matthews watched House go, she couldn't help but think how different he was outside of the hospital. All week she had heard nothing but how difficult…no, _impossible_…he could be. She heard him bellow in the hallway, mostly at his team, but sometimes at Wilson. But tonight, in that bar, he was sharp, sarcastic, even, but without that harsh edge she had seen in the hospital. Matthews smiled and pulled away, the rain continuing to beat its gentle rhythm against the roof.

House peeked out his window as Matthews pulled away. While he had managed to find out a little about her tonight, he was still curious about the mysterious cardiologist. He almost hoped it would rain again soon so he could get another ride from her…just so he could find out more about her. It was simple curiosity, nothing more.

House and Matthews continued in this vein throughout the summer. Every time it rained, Wilson would ask Matthews to drop by House's office to offer him a ride. They would hang out, sometimes at the bar, a couple of times at House's, once at Matthews'. Slowly, they got to know each other. House would talk about his cases, Matthews would complain about the mountains of paperwork that came with administration. Both of them would compare notes about the crazy patients in the clinic.

Over time, things started to change between them. Neither one was sure when the shift occurred. Perhaps it was the night of the wildest thunderstorm of the summer, when House and Matthews shared pizza in House's living room as the storm raged around them. They were talking and laughing in the easy way they had developed.

"I can't believe you pulled…_that_ out of a patient." House was actually surprised.

"True story. I won 'The Weirdest Thing' award that week. It was quite an honor, let me tell you." Matthews chuckled as she recalled the story.

"I am impressed. I didn't think anyone would beat mine."

"Wait, wait…you've got a bit of sauce right…there." She wiped it away from his face with the tip of her finger. He caught her hand before she could pull it away, putting the finger in his mouth and licking the sauce off.

"Tasty…" House gazed directly at Matthews. Chocolate brown met sapphire blue across the couch.

House moved first, gently pressing his lips against Matthews' at first, then deepening the kiss as she leaned into him, tangling her tongue with his. He pulled her closer, running his hands up and down her back, leaving a trail of kisses down her long, elegant neck. She arched her back in response and wrapped her arms around him, spreading her hands along his back, finding the hem of his shirt and feeling under it.

"Follow me…"

Wilson was working his clinic hours when he happened to notice the head of cardiology enter the lobby with the head of diagnostics the next morning. They walked by him, supposedly not noticing Wilson at all. Suddenly, just as they passed him, House started singing softly.

"_I love a rainy night…I love a rainy night…I love to hear the thunder, watch the lightning when it lights up the sky…you know it makes me feel good…"_

Matthews laughed, that silky, beautiful laugh, brushed her hand against House's, and turned toward Wilson with a smile. Wilson smiled back and nodded slightly. He never, in his wildest dreams, imagined what would come out of simply asking the new head of cardiology for a little favor.

Matthews walked along with House, grateful that she had taken the chance and knocked on his office door that rainy night.

House walked alongside Matthews, glad he had taken her up on that ride that night. All of a sudden…he decided he quite liked the rain, and even considered the idea of spending time with Matthews sometime when it wasn't raining.

**Music Credit:**

**"I Love A Rainy Night", Eddie Rabbitt, _Horizon_**

**You know the drill by now. Read, love, review. **


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